THE 


SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING 
OF  THE  NEGRO 

BY 

BOOKER  T.  WASHINGTON 

Principal  of  'Tuskegee  Normal  and 
Industrial  School,  Tuskegee,  Alabama 


/i5eh)  Jlotfe: 

REPRINTED  FROM  THE  WORLD'S  WORK  OF  AUGUST,  1903 


Copyright,  190J,  by  Doubleday,  Page  & Company,  with  Additions 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2016 


https://archive.org/details/successfultrainiOOwash 


PANORAMIC  VIEW  OF  THE  GROUNDS  OF  THE  TUSKEGEE  INSTITUTE 


* t 

THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE 

NEGRO 


THE  RESULTS  OF  SUCH  TEACHING  AS  IS  GIVEN  AT  TUSKEGEE 
INSTITUTE  — SCHOOLS  FOUNDED  ON  THE  TUSKEGEE  IDEA 

BV 

BOOKER  T.  WASHINGTON 

PRINCIPAL  OP  TUSKEGEE  INSTITUTE,  TUSKEGEE,  ALABAMA 

Photographs  by  Frances  Benjamin  Johnston 


The  Tuskegee  Normal  and  Industrial 
Institute  at  Tuskegee,  Alabama, 
was  started  in  i88i , in  a little  shanty, 
with  one  teacher  and  thirty  students.  Since 
then  the  total  number  of  students  who  have 
been  wholly  or  partly  through  the  course — 
that  is,  who  have  been  enrolled  and  have 
remained  long  enough  to  be  helped  in  any 
degree — is  about  6,000.  This  statement  is 
based  upon  the  reports  made  to  me  by 
Mr.  R.  C.  Bedford,  one  of  the  school  officers, 
who  spends  a very  large  portion  of  each  year 
in  visiting  and  corresponding  with  our 
graduates  and  ex-students  at  their  places 
of  labor. 

The  enrolment  to  date  for  the  present 
school  year  is  1,892 — 1,487  students  enrolled 
in  the  regular  Normal  and  Industrial  depart- 
ments, and  the  rest  attending  night-schools 
in  the  town  of  Tuskegee  and  in  the  nearby 
village  of  Greenwood  (both  under  the  super- 
vision of  the  school),  and  studying  at  the 
Children’s  House,  or  practice  school,  the 
kindergarten  and  the  afternoon  cooking  class 
in  the  town  of  Tuskegee. 


Thousands  of  adults,  moreover,  are  reached 
and  helped  each  year  through  the  Annual 
Tuskegee  Negro  Conference,  with  its  various 
local  Conferences  which  meet  annually 
through  the  Mothers’  Weekly  Meetings  and 
the  plantation  settlement  work  conducted 
by  Mrs.  Washington.  In  addition.  Farmers’ 
Extension  Leaflets  are  edited  at  the  Tuskegee 
Institute  and  scattered  broadly  throughout 
the  entire  South. 

From  the  first,  the  school  has  sought  to 
find  out  the  occupation  by  which  the  people 
chiefly  earn  their  living,  or  are  likely  to  earn 
it  in  the  future,  and  then  to  train  men  and 
women  alike  to  be  of  service  in  these  occu- 
pations. In  the  main,  those  who  go  out 

(1)  follow  the  industry  they  have  learned, 

(2)  teach  in  a public  or  private  school  or 
teach  part  of  the  year  and  farm  or  labor 
the  rest,  (3)  follow  housekeeping  or  other 
domestic  service,  or  (4)  enter  a profes- 
sion or  the  Government  service  or  become 
merchants.  Among  the  teachers  are  many 
who  instruct  in  farming  or  in  some  indus- 
try; the  professional  men  are  largely  phy- 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


THE  TUSKEGEE  FACULTY  COUNCIL 

Reading  from  left  to  right : i,  R.  R.  Taylor;  2,  R.  M.  Atwell,  Farm  Manager;  3,  Commandant-Major  Ramsey;  4,  Chaplain  Edgar  J.  Penney; 
5,  M.  T.  Driver,  Business  Agent;  6,  Wm.  Mayberry,  Head  of  Boarding  Department;  7,  Geo.  W.  Carver,  Instructor  in  Agriculture;  8,  Miss 
Jane  E.  Clark,  Lady  Principal;  q.  Emmet  J.  Scott,  Private  Secretary;  10,  Booker  T.  Washington;  ii,  Warren  Logan,  Treasurer;  12,  John 
H.  Washington,  Superintendent  of  Industries 

sicians;  and  the  professional  women  are  a dozen  former  students  in  idleness.  They 
mostly  trained  nurses.  are  busy  in  schoolroom,  field,  shop,  home  or 

After  diligent  investigation,  I cannot  find  church.  They  are  busy  because  they  have 


UK.  BOOKER  T.  WASHINGTON 
Principal  of  the  Tuskegee  Institute 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


THE  CARNEGIE  LIBRARY  AT  TUSKEGEE 
Built  by  students 


placed  themselves  in  demand  by  learning 
to  do  that  which  the  world  wants  done,  and 
because  they  have  learned  the  disgrace  of 
idleness  and  the  sweetness  of  labor.  One 
of  the  greatest  embarrassments  that  con- 
fronts our  schools  at  the  present  time  is  our 
inability  to  supplv  any  large  proportion  of 


the  demands  that  are  constantly  coming  to 
us  from  the  people  of  both  races,  North  and 
South,  for  our  students.  But  aside  from 
their  skill,  what  has  made  Tuskegee  men  and 
women  succeed  is  the  spirit  of  unselfishness 
and  a willingness  to  sacrifice  themselves  for 
others  instilled  into  them  at  Tuskegee.  In 


STUDENT  CORPS  MARCHING  TO  CHAPEL 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


THE  STUDENTS  DIGGING  THE  FOUNDATIONS  FOR  THE  C.  P.  HUNTINGTON  MEMORIAL  BUILDING 


many  cases,  while  building  up  a school  in  a 
community,  they  work  for  months  without 
any  fixed  salary  or  promise  of  salary,  because 
they  have  learned  that  helping  some  one  else 
is  the  secret  of  all  happiness. 

Owing  to  the  demand  for  those  trained  at 
Tuskegee,  it  is  difficult  tc  keep  any  large 
proportion  of  students  in  the  school  until 


they  graduate.  For  this  reason  it  is  not  so 
easy  to  show  the  results  of  the  work  in 
concrete  form  as  it  would  be  if  a larger 
number  of  the  students  finished.  But  the 
fact  indicates  that  the  school  is  achieving  its 
purpose  in  preparing  its  students  to  do  what 
the  world  wants  done. 

Some  years  ago  a young  man  named 


STUDENTS  BUILDING  THE  NEW  GIRLS’  DORMITORY 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


ROAD-MENDING  UNDER  THE  DIRECTION  OF  A TEACHER 


Williams  came  to  Tuskegee  from  Mobile, 
Alabama.  Before  coming  he  had  nearly 
completed  the  public-school  course  of  study 
at  Mobile  and  had  been  earning  about  fifty 
cents  a day  at  various  kinds  of  unskilled 
labor.  He  came  to  extend  his  studies  in 
academic  branches,  with  the  object  of  com- 
bining this  with  the  trade  of  brick-masonry. 


To  take  the  full  course  in  brick-masonry, 
including  mechanical  drawing  and  so  on,  he 
should  have  remained  three  years.  He 
remained  for  six  months  only.  During  this 
time  he  got  some  rough  knowledge  of  brick- 
masonry  and  advanced  somewhat  in  his 
academic  studies.  When  he  returned  to 
Mobile  it  soon  became  known  that  the  young 


STACKING  HAY  ON  ONE  OF  THE  TUSKEGEE  FARMS 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


r 


BREAKING  GROUND  FOR  A NEW  ROAD 


man  had  been  working  at  brick-masonry. 
At  once  he  was  dubbed  a full-fledged  brick- 
mason.  As  there  was  unusual  activity  in 
building  in  Mobile  just  then,  instead  of  having 
to  seek  odd  jobs,  he  found  himself  sought 
after,  and  he  soon  saw  that,  notwithstanding 
his  rather  crude  knowledge  of  the  trade,  he 
could  earn  one  dollar  and  fifty  cents  per  day 


and  have  more  work  offered  him  than  he 
could  do.  When  the  three  months’  vacation 
expired,  Williams  debated  whether  he  ought 
to  return  to  Tuskegee  to  finish  his  course  or 
remain  at  home  and  try  to  purchase  a home 
for  his  widowed  mother.  And  seeing  an 
opportunity  to  make  two  dollars  a day  at 
his  trade  he  decided  not  to  return. 


SUGAR-CANE  MILL  ON  THE  MARSHALL  FARM  AT  TUSKEGEE 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


AGRICULTURAL  STUDENTS  WORKING  IN  THE  EXPERIMENT  PATCH 


As  in  hundreds  of  other  cases,  the  Mobile 
man  had  unusual  natural  ability,  and  was 
able  to  get  out  of  his  six  months  at  Tuskegee 
a mental,  spiritual  and  bodily  awakening 
that  fixed  his  purpose  in  life.  Not  only  this, 
but  he  got  such  a start  in  his  trade  that  by 
close  studv  and  observation  he  was  able  to 


improve  from  month  to  month  in  the  scope 
and  quality  of  his  work,  and  within  a few 
months  he  ceased  to  work  for  other  people  by 
the  day  and  began  to  take  small  contracts. 
At  the  present  time  ]\Ir.  Williams  is  one  of 
the  most  substantial  colored  citizens  of 
Mobile  He  owns  his  home  and  is  a reliable 


CUTTING  SUGAR-CANE  ON  THE  MARSHALL  FARM 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


A CORNER  IN  THE  TUSKEGEE  REPAIR  SHOP 


and  successful  contractor,  doing  important 
work  for  both  races.  In  addition  to  being  a 
successful  brick-mason  and  contractor,  he 
owns  and  ojierates  a dairy  business,  and  his 
patrons  are  not  confined  by  any  means  to 
the  members  of  the  Negro  race. 

The  value,  then,  of  the  work  of  schools, 
where  the  trade  or  economic  element  enters 


so  largely  as  it  does  at  Tuskegee,  cannot  be 
judged  in  any  large  degree  by  the  nuiviber  of 
students  who  finish  the  full  course  and  receive 
diplomas.  What  is  true  of  the  course  in 
brick-masonry  is  true  in  a larger  or  smaller 
degree  of  all  the  other  thirty-seven  industrial 
divisions  of  the  school. 

Another  example.  Crawford  D.  Menafee 


' m 

t&tliiBBay  ■- . Bggi  1.  \iA 

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HE-  IBf  fli 

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WOOD-WORKING  IN  THE  CARPENTER  SHOP 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


SHOEIXG  A HORSE  IN  THE  BLACKSMITH  SHOP 


came  to  Tuskegee  about  1890  and  began 
taking  tlie  agricultural  and  academic  courses. 
He  was  considerably  advanced  in  age  before 
coming,  and  as  a result  he  entered  one  of  the 
lower  classes.  As  he  had  no  money  to  pay 
any  portion  of  his  expenses,  he  was  given 
permission  to  enter  the  night-school,  which 


meant  that  he  was  to  work  on  the  farm  ten 
hours  a day,  receiving,  meanwhile,  lessons  in 
the  principles  of  farming  and  in  academic 
branches  two  hours  at  night.  He  was  never 
classed  as  a very  bright  student,  and  in  the 
purely  literary  studies  made  such  slow  progress 
that  he  dropped  out  before  completing  the 


STUDENTS  WORKING  IN  THE  PAINT  SHOP 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


A CORNER  IN  THE  SHOE  SHOP 


full  course,  either  agricultural  or  academic. 
In  fact,  he  lacked  two  years  of  finishing,  after 
repeating  several  classes.  It  was  noted, 
however,  while  he  was  in  school,  that,  notwith- 
standing his  dulness  in  his  theoretical  work, 
he  manifested  unusual  enthusiasm  and  special 
ability  in  practical  farm  work.  His  ability 
was  so  marked  that  he  was  asked  to  take  a 


place  of  responsibility  as  assistant  to  one  of 
the  school’s  farm  managers.  It  soon  became 
evident  that  he  possessed  extraordinary 
executive  ability.  He  read  constantl}'  every- 
thing of  value  that  he  could  secure  upon 
agriculture,  and  soon  began  to  show  signs 
of  considerable  intellectual  growth  and  the 
possession  of  a really  systematic  mind.  Mr. 


MAKING  AND  UPHOLSTERING  BARREL  FURNITURE 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


THE  TAILOR  SHOP 


Menafee  was  soon  promoted  to  a higher  posi- 
tion at  Tuskegee. 

A few  years  later  there  came  a call  for  some 
one  to  introduce  theoretical  and  practical 
agriculture  into  the  State  Normal  College  for 
colored  people  at  Tallahassee.  Mr.  Menafee 
was  recommended.  The  students  had  no 
wish  to  learn  agriculture.  They  were  opposed 


to  it  in  any  form.  By  tact  and  patience  Mr. 
Menafee  gradually  won  the  students  by  show'- 
ing  the  importance  of  the  subject  to  them 
and  to  the  race.  The  result  is  this:  Mr. 

Menafee  has  had  charge  of  the  agricultural 
department  of  the  Florida  school  for  three 
years,  and  has  made  theoretical  and  practical 
farming  so  effective  that  it  is  now  one  of  the 


A CLASS  IN  DRESSMAKING 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


1 

II  Ml  1 

IH 

P V/' 

WHERE  THE  STUDENTS  PRINT  THE  SCHOOL  PAPER 


most  popular  branches  in  the  school.  Not 
only  do  the  young  men  cultivate  a large 
acreage  each  year,  but  a number  of  girls  also 
receive  instruction  in  gardening,  dairying 
and  poultry  raising.  In  a word,  the  whole 
spirit  of  the  school  regarding  agriculture 
has  been  revolutionized,  and  the  depart- 
ment has  been  placed  upon  an  effective  and 
practical  foundation. 


There  are  hundreds  of  cases  almost 
similar  to  that  of  Mr.  Menafee  and  the 
Mobile  brick-mason.  These  represent  a class 
of  students  who  have  imbibed  the  spirit 
of  the  school  as  well  as  its  methods,  and  are 
doing  far-reaching  service,  though  they  are 
not  enrolled  on  our  list  of  graduates. 

From  the  first  at  Tuskegee  we  have  tried  to 
give  special  attention  to  all  forms  of  agricul- 


THE  CLASS  IN  MECHANICAL  DRAWING 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


MATTRESS  MAKING  AT  TUSKEGEE 


tural  training,  because  we  believe  that  the 
Negro,  like  any  other  race  in  the  same  stage 
of  development,  is  better  off  when  owning 
and  cultivating  the  soil.  I do  not  believe 
that  the  black  man’s  education  should 
be  confined  wholly  to  industrial  training,  nor 
do  I advocate  anything  for  the  Negro  that 


I would  not  emphasize  for  the  Jews,  Germans 
or  Japanese  were  they  in  the  same  relative 
state  of  civilization. 

The  results  of  our  agricultural  work  in  the 
past  have  not  been  as  apparent  as  they  will 
be  in  the  future,  for  the  reason  that  in  order 
to  get  under  shelter  we  have  been  com^pelled 


THE  CI^SS  IN  COOKING  AND  HOUSEWORK  AT  MISS  DAVIS’S  SCHOOL  AT  THE  RUSSELL  FARM  OF  THE 

THOMPSON  PLANTATION 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


SCHOOL  ROOM  AT  MISS  ANNIE  DAVIS’S  SCHOOL 


at  Tuskegee  to  emphasize  the  building  trades. 
The  task  of  erecting  nearly  seventy  buildings 
in  which  to  house  about  seventeen  hundred 
people  has  not  been  easy.  Still,  what  are 
some  of  the  results  of  our  lessons  in  farming  ? 
A few  weeks  ago  I took  a drive  through  a 


certain  section  of  Macon  County,  Alabama. 
My  drive  extended  a distance  of  perhaps 
eight  miles,  and  during  this  time  I drove 
through  or  near  the  farms  of  A.  H.  Adams, 
Thomas  Courrier,  Frank  McCay,  Nathaniel 
Harris,  Thomas  Anderson,  John  Smith  and 


THE  STUDENTS  AT  MISS  DAVIS’S  SCHOOL 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


^ i V . 

THE  CARPENTER  SHOP  AT  THE  SNOW  HILL  INSTITUTE 


Dennis  Upshaw.  These  seven  men  had 
attended  the  Tuskegee  Institute  for  a longer  or 
shorter  period,  and  each  had  already  paid  for 
his  farm  or  was  buying  it.  In  three  of  these 
cases  the  men  had  studied  in  the  Phelps  Hall 
Bible  Training  School  in  the  morning  and  had 
taken  the  agricultural  course  in  the  afternoon. 
When  I visited  their  farms  I saw  the  men 


actually  at  work,  and  it  was  most  encouraging 
and  interesting  to  note  the  air  of  cleanliness 
and  system  about  their  farms  and  homes.  In 
every  case  these  men  were  not  confining  them- 
selves to  the  raising  of  cotton,  but  had  learned 
to  diversify  their  crops.  All  were  active  in 
church  and  Sunday-school  work,  and  were 
using  their  influence  to  get  others  to  buy 


CLASS  IN  PLAIN  SEWING  AT  THE  SNOW  HILL  INSTITUTE,  SNOW  HILL,  ALABAMA 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


STUDENTS  PICKING  THE  SCHOOL  COTTON  CROP  AT  MOUNT  MEIGS  INSTITUTE,  ALABAMA 


homes.  The  largest  farmer  among  them 
was  Mr.  Upshaw.  He  began  farming  with 
practically  nothing.  At  the  present  time 
he  owns  one  hundred  and  fifteen  acres  of 
land,  which  is  cultivated  by  himself  and 
family.  On  this  land  is  a neat,  attractive 
house,  a bam  and  outbuildings,  and  a small 


sugar  house  for  boiling  syrup  from  the 
cane  which  he  raises  for  his  own  consump- 
tion. His  home  and  farm  are  models  for 
other  farmers.  He  raises  not  only  cotton, 
but  also  corn  and  oats,  vegetables,  fmit, 
live  stock  and  fowls.  He  has  a particularly 
fine  peach  orchard.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Upshaw 


AN  OUTDOOR  CLASS  IN  LAUNDERING  AT  THE  MOUNT  MEIGS  INSTITUTE 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


are  leaders  in  the  county  Farmers’  Institute. 
Mrs.  Upshaw  is  also  a member  of  the  Mothers’ 
Meeting  which  assembles  regularly  at  Tus- 
kegee  town.  While  Mr.  Upshaw’s  present 
house  is  better  than  the  average  farmhouse 
in  that  section,  still,  when  I last  visited  this 
farm,  I found  lumber  on  the  ground  to  be 
used  in  erecting  a new  and  larger  house. 
Hundreds  of  such  examples  could  be  cited. 

I have  given  these  seven  examples  largely 
for  the  reason  that  people  who  know 
absolutely  nothing  about  the  subject  often 
make  the  statement  that  when  a Negro  gets 
any  degree  of  education  he  will  not  work — 
especially  as  a farmer.  As  a rule,  people  who 
make  these  sweeping  assertions  against  the 
Negro  are  blinded  by  prejudice.  The  judg- 
ment of  any  man,  black  or  white,  that  is  con- 
trolled by  race  prejudice  is  not  to  be  trusted. 
With  one  exception,  I did  not  know  of  the 
farming  operations  of  these  men  before  taking 
the  drive  referred  to,  but  I was  not  in  the 
least  surprised  at  what  I saw  because  my 
years  of  experience  have  brought  nie  into 
constant  contact  with  Tuskegee  men  and 
women  all  over  the  South,  and  wherever  I 
have  met  them  I have  found  that  they  had 
in  some  degree  raised  the  level  of  life 
about  them. 

Last  January,  when  in  Los  Angeles,  Cali- 
fornia, 1 met  by  chance  a young  man  who  had 
taken  a ])artial  course  in  our  nurse-training 
department.  I asked  him  if  he  were  reflecting 
credit  upon  the  Tuskegee  Institute?  With- 
out a word  he  pulled  out  a bank  book  and 
asked  me  to  inspect  it.  I found  a creditable 
sum  to  his  credit.  Before  I was  through 
inspecting  the  first  bank  book,  he  handed  me 
a second  which  contained  another  amount  to 
his  credit  at  another  bank. 

I found  in  the  same  city  that  Mrs.  Barre, 
one  of  our  graduates,  is  one  of  the  leading 
trained  nurses  of  that  city. 

Nearly  three  years  ago  three  of  our  gradu- 
ates went  to  Africa  under  the  leadership  of 
one  of  our  teachers,  Mr.  J.  N.  Calloway,  to 
introduce  cotton  raising  among  the  natives 
under  the  auspices  of  the  German  Govern- 
ment. At  the  end  of  the  second  year  the 
German  officials  were  so  pleased  that  they 
employed  three  other  students.  At  the  end 
of  the  fourth  year  the  experiment  was  suc- 
cessful to  the  extent  that  a hundred  bales 
of  cotton  have  been  shipped  from  the  colony 
of  Togo,  Africa,  to  Berlin.  Only  a few 


months  ago  the  German  officials  were  kind 
enough  to  send  me  several  pairs  of  hose  made 
from  cotton  raised  by  our  students. 

Since  starting  this  experiment,  we  have 
received  applications  from  both  English  and 
Belgian  cotton-raising  companies  that  wish 
to  secure  Tuskegee  men  to  introduce  cotton- 
raising in  their  African  possessions.  The 
Porto  Rican  Government  makes  an  annual 
appropriation  for  the  purpose  of  maintaining 
eighteen  students  at  Tuskegee  in  order  that 
they  may  learn  our  methods.  The  Haytian 
Government  has  recently  arranged  to  send  a 
number  of  young  men  here  mainly  with  the 
view  of  their  being  trained  in  farming. 
Besides,  we  have  students  present  from  the 
West  Indies,  Africa  and  several  South 
American  countries. 

iVnother  branch  of  agriculture  to  which  we 
have  for  a number  of  years  given  special 
attention  is  dairying.  We  have  demands 
from  Southern  white  people  for  more  trained 
dairymen  than  we  have  thus  far  been  able  to 
turn  out. 

In  1898  L.  A.  Smith  finished  the  course 
of  training  in  dairying  and  in  academic 
branches,  after  making  his  way  through  by 
working  in  the  day  and  attending  school  at 
night  during  a great  portion  of  his  stay. 
Soon  after  Smith  graduated  we  had  a call  for 
a well-trained  dairyman  from  the  Forest  City 
Creamery  Company,  of  Rockford,  Illinois. 
Smith  was  recommended.  He  has  been 
holding  an  important  position  in  the  creamery 
for  five  years,  and  has  several  times  been 
promoted  and  received  an  increase  of  salary. 
Smith  has  paid  for  a neat  and  comfortable 
home  where  he  and  his  wife  reside.  He  has 
the  confidence  and  respect  of  the  entire 
community.  In  this  connection,  I might  say 
that  in  taking  up  this  work  he  looked  so  young 
and  inexperienced  that  his  ability  was  some- 
what doubted,  but  it  did  not  take  him  long  to 
prove  that  he  was  fully  equal  to  the  occasion. 
The  proprietor  unhesitatingly  said  that  he 
was  one  of  the  most  proficient  and  valuable 
men  that  he  had  in  his  employ,  and  that  he 
had  placed  him  in  a very  important  and 
trying  place,  that  of  making  cultures  for 
butter — that  is,  the  development  and  use  of 
the  particular  germs  which  have  to  do  with 
the  fine  flavor  of  butter.  This  is  a secret 
department  in  which  no  one  except  the 
employees  operating  it  and  the  proprietor 
are  permitted  to  enter.  Mr.  Smith  also  did 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


some  very  important  chemical  work  in  con- 
nection with  a lawsuit  which  was  supposed 
to  involve  the  manufacture  of  spurious 
butter. 

In  Montgomery  County,  Alabama,  for  a 
number  of  years,  Mr.  M.  N.  Scott,  a Southern 
white  man,  has  operated  the  largest  and 
most  successful  dair}’  farm  in  his  section. 
Mr.  Scott  has  in  his  employ  three  Tuskegee 
men,  with  Scott  Thomas  in  charge.  Mr.  Scott 
constantly  tells  us  that  those  men  trained 
at  our  school  are  the  most  efficient  that  he 
can  secure.  He  keeps  a standing  order  with 
Mr.  George  W.  Carver,  the  instructor  in 
dairying,  to  the  effect  that  he  will  employ 
any  one  that  Mr.  Carver  recommends.  Not 
far  from  Mr.  Scott’s  dairy  is  a smaller  one 
owned  by  Mr.  E.  J.  Hughes,  another  white 
man.  Some  time  ago  Mr.  Hughes  secured 
Luther  M.  Jones,  who  had  taken  only  a 
partial  course  in  dairying  at  Tuskegee,  to 
make  butter  and  cheese  for  him. 

Such  examples  can  be  found  in  nearly 
every  one  of  the  Southern  States. 

While  referring  to  agricultural  subjects,  I 
ought  to  add  that,  beginning  three  years  ago, 
we  now  give  the  opportunity  to  a class  of  our 
women  to  learn  gardening,  fruit-growing, 
dairying,  poultry  raising  and  bee-keeping. 
As  yet  there  has  not  been  enough  time  in 
which  to  judge  of  the  value  of  this  new 
feature  of  the  school. 

From  the  first  the  work  of  this  institution 
has  been  closely  related  to  the  public  school 
system  of  the  South,  for  it  must  be  clear  to 
all  that  in  the  last  analysis  we  must  depend 
upon  public  schools  for  the  general  education 
of  the  masses,  and  it  is  most  important 
that  the  larger  institutions  for  the  education 
of  the  Negro  keep  in  close  and  sympa- 
thetic touch  with  the  school  officials  of  the 
Southern  States. 

Another  way  that  we  assist  the  public 
school  system  of  the  South  is  by  sending 
out  men  and  women  who  become  the  teachers 
of  teachers.  One  of  the  best  examples  of 
this  is  the  case  of  Isaac  Fisher,  a poor  young 
man  who  came  to  Tuskegee  a number  of 
years  ago  and  worked  his  way  through,  so 
far  as  his  board  was  concerned.  Two  years 
ago  Mr.  Fisher,  on  my  recommendation,  was 
elected  by  the  State  officials  of  the  State  of 
Arkansas  to  the  imjjortant  position  of 
Principal  of  the  Branch  Normal  College  of 
Pine  Bluff,  Arkansas,  which  is  the  main 


institution  for  training  colored  teachers  for 
the  public  schools  of  that  commonwealth. 
Mr.  Fisher  has  associated  with  him  a rather 
large  force  of  teachers,  two  of  whom  are 
also  Tuskegee  graduates.  In  the  school  are 
students  a large  proportion  of  whom  will 
become  not  only  ])ublic  school  teachers  in 
the  usual  sense,  but,  having  been  trained  by 
Mr.  FLsher  in  the  industries,  will  also  introduce 
them  gradually  into  their  teaching.  There  is 
hardly  a single  Southern  State  where  our  men 
and  women  are  not  found  in  some  of  the 
larger  schools  for  teacher  training. 

While  students  at  Tuskegee,  our  men  and 
women  are  instructed  constantly  in  methods 
of  building  schoolhouses  and  prolonging  the 
school  term.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  outside 
the  larger  Southern  cities  and  towns  in  the 
rural  districts  one  will  find  nine-tenths  of  the 
schools  wholly  unfit  for  use,  and  rarely  is 
the  public  school  session  longer  than  five 
months.  In  most  cases  it  is  not  more  than 
four.  These  conditions  exist  largeh^  because 
of  the  poverty  of  the  States.  One  of  the 
problems  of  our  teachers  is  to  show  the  people 
how  through  private  effort  they  can  build 
schoolhouses  and  prolong  the  school  term. 

Milton  Calloway  left  Tuskegee  three  years 
ago.  While  here,  in  addition  to  taking  the 
normal  course,  he  learned  the  trade  of 
tinsmithing.  When  he  returned  to  his  home 
at  Union  Springs,  Bullock  County,  Alabama, 
he  secured  a school  some  distance  in  the 
country.  The  term  of  the  school  was  so 
short  that  Calloway  found  he  could  not  live 
all  the  year  by  teaching  during  the  three  or 
four  months  of  the  session.  Now  the  term 
is  six  months.  Calloway’s  trade  came  to  his 
rescue.  Soon  after  he  began  teaching  he 
made  an  arrangement  with  a white  man  in 
the  town  by  which  he  was  to  work  in  his  shop 
on  Saturdays  and  during  his  vacation  months. 
By  following  this  plan,  the  school  is  gradually 
being  put  upon  its  feet  largely  by  reason  of 
the  fact  that  l\Ir.  Calloway  is  teaching  the 
people  how  to  save  their  money,  improve 
the  schoolhouse,  prolong  the  school  term 
and  buy  homes. 

Moses  P.  Simmons,  another  one  of  our 
graduates  in  an  adjoining  county,  has 
lengthened  the  term  of  the  public  school  by 
teaching  the  children  to  grow  vegetables, 
which  have  been  disposed  of  for  school 
purposes. 

During  the  last  session  of  our  Negro 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


Conference  in  February,  one  delegate  from 
Coneculi  County,  Alabama,  described  how 
the  people  had  nearly  doubled  the  length  of 
the  school  term  by  each  family  agreeing  to 
plant  an  extra  half  acre  which  was  designated 
as  the  “school  half  acre.”  A number  of 
Tuskegee  men  and  women  have  put  on  foot 
some  such  scheme  as  this. 

For  the  sake  of  information,  I asked  one 
of  the  officials  of  the  Tuskegee  Institute  to 
take  our  nearest  large  city,  Montgomery, 
Alabama,  to  obtain  the  name  of  every 
student  there  who  had  received  a diploma 
or  certificate  from  Tuskegee,  or  who  had 
remained  long  enough  to  be  in  any  degree 
influenced  by  its  teaching,  and  to  report  to 
me  exactly  what  he  found  after  making  a 
personal  inspection.  Here  are  a few  of  his 
reports : 

“Perry,  J.  W.,  class  of  1889,  lives  near  the  city. 
Is  farming.  He  controls  150  acres,  owns  five  head 
of  cattle,  and  teaches  school  six  months  in  the  year. 

■'  Davis,  Joseph,  who  has  been  away  from  Tuskegee 
three  years,  I found  at  work  on  a four-story  building 
in  process  of  erection  on  Commerce  Street.  He  was 
getting  $2. 50  a day.  At  work  on  the  same  job  were 
William  Fuller  at  $3.60  a day  and  H.  T.  Wheat  at 
$2. 50.  Last  summer  Fuller  received  S4.00  a day 
for  four  months  at  Troy,  Alabama. 

“Moten,  Pierce,  is  at  work  as  drug  clerk  in  the 
drug  store  of  Doctor  A.  C.  Dungee,  at  the  comer  of 
Court  and  Washington  streets.  He  graduated 
from  Tuskegee  in  1902.  While  at  the  school  he 
worked  in  the  hospital,  and  much  of  the  time  had 
charge  of  the  drug  room.  He  is  studying  medicine, 
and  has  already  spent  a session  at  Meharry  Medical 
College,  Xashville,  Tennessee. 

“Campbell,  Mrs.  Berry  X.  (Miss  Bowen),  gradu- 
ated in  the  class  of  1887,  and  her  home  has  been  in 
Montgomery  most  of  the  time  since  then,  although 
her  work  at  times  takes  her  away  from  the  city. 
She  is  a trained  nurse  of  excellent  reputation  and 
wide  experience,  and  has  been  frequently  employed 
at  Hill’s  Infirmary.  When  I inquired  for  her  she 
was  taking  care  of  a private  case.  She  owns  two 
good  houses  on  Union  Street  and  on  High  Street, 
both  of  which  I saw.  She  also  owns  a vacant  lot.” 

There  were  only  three  whose  records  were 
found  to  be  uncertain  or  unsatisfactory. 
The  same  kind  of  investigation  will  reveal 
almost  similar  conditions  existing  in  a greater 
or  less  degree  in  other  Southern  cities. 

Now  let  me  show  their  life  in  smaller  towns : 
one  containing  between  four  and  five  thousand 
inhabitants.  Some  time  ago  Mr.  Bedford, 
one  of  our  trustees,  made  a personal  investiga- 


tion in  Eufaula,  Alabama.  I quote  directly 
from  Mr.  Bedford  as  to  what  he  found: 

■'Sidney  Murphy,  graduated  in  1887.  He  went  at 
once  to  Eufaula.  For  three  years  he  taught  and 
farmed  in  the  country.  He  was  then  made  principal 
of  the  colored  public  schools  of  the  city.  He  still 
holds  this  position,  and  is  now  serving  his  thirteenth 
year.  He  has  a nice  home  in  the  city,  three  houses 
that  he  rents,  and  some  vacant  lots. 

“John  Jordan,  1901,  a graduate  in  hamess- 
making, opened  a shop  in  Eufaula,  September,  1901, 
He  reached  Eufaula  with  S16  and  a very  few  tools. 
He  paid  S7  license,  83.50  in  advance  for  a month’s 
rent,  and  had  85. 50  for  board  and  other  ex- 
penses. He  curtained  off  a little  space  in  his  shop 
for  a bedroom,  and  with  an  oil  stove  cooked  his 
own  meals.  In  this  way  he  saved  up  S50,  but  lost 
it  in  the  failure  of  the  bank  of  Eufaula.  He  has 
gone  right  on  with  his  business,  and  now  has  one 
of  the  best  shops  in  the  city.  He  has  established 
the  People’s  Library,  which  now  has  more  than  600 
volumes  in  it.  He  has  a reading-room  and  literary 
society  over  which  he  presides,  and  is  superintendent 
of  the  A.  M.  E.  Sunday-school.” 

After  having  spent  several  years  at  the 
school,  during  which  they  worked  upon  the 
school  farm,  Frank  and  Dow  L.  Reid  left 
Tuskegee  at  the  completion  of  the  B Middle 
Class.  Frank,  the  older  brother,  left  in  the 
year  1888,  and  Dow  in  the  year  1891.  Before 
coming  to  Tuskegee  these  young  men  had 
lived  upon  a rented  farm  with  their  father, 
but  on  returning  home  they  decided  to  buy 
a farm  of  their  own.  They  entered  into  an 
agreement  to  purchase  a farm  of  320  acres, 
four  miles  from  the  old  homestead,  and  with 
little  or  no  money,  but  with  a determination 
to  succeed,  they  began  to  cultivate  the  land. 
They  agreed  to  pay  $5.50  per  acre  for  the 
place,  and  regardless  of  the  fact  that  they 
had  little  money  at  the  time  they  bought  the 
farm,  within  a few  years  the  whole  amount  of 
$1,760  was  paid.  In  addition  to  this  farm, 
the  Reid  brothers,  as  they  are  styled  for 
miles  around,  have  bought  another  farm  of 
225  acres  at  $10  per  acre.  This  farm  is  about 
two  miles  away  from  the  first  place  mentioned. 
When  the  last  payment  upon  this  last  pur- 
chase is  made  in  the  fall,  after  crops  have  been 
gathered  and  marketed,  it  will  make  a total 
of  $4,010  made  and  paid  for  land  alone  by 
these  young  men  since  the  younger  one  left 
Tuskegee  some  twelve  years  ago. 

The  stock  and  farming  implements  on 
these  farms  are  far  superior  to  those  seen  upon 
most  of  the  plantations.  On  the  farm  of 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


320  acres  are  seventeen  fine  horses  and  mules, 
all  large  and  in  good  condition;  there  are 
thirty  well-bred  cows  and  fifty  fine,  healthy- 
looking  hogs,  besides  a large  number  of 
chickens  and  guineas,  which  furnish  plenty 
of  eggs  for  the  families’  use.  The  farming 
implements,  including  plows,  mowers,  rakes, 
harrows,  etc.,  are  of  the  latest  improved 
Deering  make.  The  four  double  wagons,  the 
single  top  buggy,  the  road  wagon  and  go-cart 
are  all  in  good  order  and  are  kept  under  cover 
when  not  in  use.  Not  infrequently  do  we  find 
farmers  in  the  South  who,  when  the  crop  is 
made,  leave  the  plows,  the  mower,  the  rake, 
and  in  fact  all  the  farming  implements, 
standing  out  in  the  field  in  all  the  weather 
during  the  winter  months.  A visitor  to  the 
Reid  brothers’  plantation,  however,  will  not 
find  this  to  be  true  with  regard  to  their  farm 
machinery.  Each  piece  of  machinery  on 
this  plantation  has  a place  under  a shed 
built  for  the  purpose,  and  is  kept  there  when 
not  in  use. 

There  are  eight  dwelling  houses — a four- 
room  frame  building  in  which  the  young  men 
and  their  families  live,  and  seven  log  cabins  in 
which  the  farmhands  live  with  their  families. 
The  first  is  rather  old  and  uncomely  in  appear- 
ance from  the  outside,  but  the  interior 
is  more  pleasing.  The  bedrooms  are  large 
and  clean,  each  having  sufficient  windows 
• and  doors  to  permit  of  necessary  ventilation 
during  the  sleeping  hours.  The  dining-room 
is  well  kept,  and  the  whole  interior  of  the 
house  presents  a neat,  tidy  and  attractive 
appearance.  This  house  is  to  be  replaced 
by  a larger  one,  to  be  built  during  the  winter. 

A large  cotton  gin,  with  an  eighty-tooth 
saw,  is  owned  and  operated  by  these  young 
men.  Last  year,  besides  ginning  the  125 
bales  of  cotton  raised  upon  their  own  planta- 
tion, they  ginned  the  cotton  raised  by  nearly 
all  the  other  farmers  in  the  neighborhood. 

The  post-office  at  Dawkins  was  formerly 
about  four  miles  from  its  present  location, 
but  since  the  Reid  brothers  settled  where 
they  now  are  and  the  community  built  up  so 
rapidly  the  post-office  was  removed  to  their 
])lace  and  the  plantation  was  named  Dawkins. 
The  post-office  is  located  in  the  general 
merchandise  store  of  the  Reids,  and  Mr.  Frank 
Reid  is  postmaster. 

There  was  neither  a church  nor  a school- 
house  in  the  community  when  these  young 
men  went  to  Dawkins.  They  purchased 


four  acres  of  land  nearby  and  donated  it  for 
the  purpose  and  assisted  in  building  a com- 
fortable church,  which  has  been  used  both  as 
a church  and  a schoolhouse.  Preaching  serv- 
ices are  held  regularly  in  the  church  and 
a flourishing  school  is  now  being  taught  from 
seven  to  nine  months  each  year.  Last  year 
there  were  more  than  one  hundred  boys  and 
girls  registered.  Mr.  J.  N.  Calloway,  who 
graduated  from  the  Tuskegee  Institute  in  1892, 
is  principal  of  the  school  and  has  one  assistant 
teacher.  A new  two-room  schoolhouse  is 
now  being  built  through  the  efforts  of  Mr. 
Calloway  and  will  be  completed  at  the  time 
of  the  opening  of  the  school  the  latter  part  of 
next  October. 

I am  often  asked  to  what  extent  we  are 
able  to  supply  domestic  servants  directly 
from  this  institution.  I always  answer,  “ Not 
to  any  large  extent,  notwithstanding  that 
women  are  trained  here  in  ever5'thing  relating 
to  work  in  the  home.”  When  a woman 
finishes  one  of  our  courses  she  is  in  demand 
at  once  at  a salary  three  or  four  times  as  large 
as  that  paid  in  the  average  home.  Aside 
from  this,  we  are  helping  more  in  the  direction 
of  preparing  workers  in  the  home  by  sending 
out  in  the  different  portions  of  the  country 
strong  leaders  who  will  go  into  local  communi- 
ties and  teach  these  lessons,  than  we  would 
be  by  trying  to  send  a cook  directly  into  each 
family  who  applies  to  us.  The  latter  would  be 
a never-ending  process.  Miss  Annie  Canty, 
for  example,  teaches  cooking  and  other 
industries  in  the  public  schools  of  Columbus, 
Georgia.  There  is  a little  leaven  that  we 
hope  will  gradually  help  leaven  the  whole 
lump.  Largely  through  the  influence  of  our 
graduates,  cooking  and  other  industries  are 
being  taught  in  many  of  the  public  schools 
of  the  South.  Another  young  woman.  Miss 
Mary  L.  McCrary,  is  doing  the  same  thing  in 
the  Industrial  College  for  colored  people  in 
Oklahoma. 

Not  a few  of  our  men  have  become  mer- 
chants, and  in  all  cases  they  are  patronized  by 
both  races  and  have  high  commercial  rating. 
Two  of  the  best  examples  of  this  class  are 
Mr.  A.  J.  Wilbom,  who  is  a successful  mer- 
chant in  the  town  of  Tuskegee,  and  Mr.  A.  J. 
Wood,  Benton,  Alabama. 

One  of  the  questions  that  I am  most  fre- 
quently asked  is,  to  what  extent  are  Tuskegee 
graduates  able  to  reproduce  the  work  of  the 
parent  institution?  Just  as  the  Tuskegee 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


Institute  is  an  outgrowth  of  the  Hampton 
Institute,  so  other  smaller  schools  have 
grown  out  of  the  Tuskegee  Institute  in  various 
parts  of  the  country.  There  are  at  present 
sixteen  schools  of  some  size  that  have  grown 
directly  out  of  the  Tuskegee  Institute  or 
have  been  reorganized  by  Tuskegee  men 
and  w^omen.  In  all  cases  these  schools  have 
growm  to  the  point  where  they  have  been 
chartered  under  the  laws  of  the  State. 

The  Yoorhees  Industrial  School  at  Den- 
mark, South  Carolina,  for  example,  was 
founded  by  Elizabeth  E.  Wright,  class  of 
1894.  It  is  now  in  its  seventh  year.  Miss 
Wright  w'as  greatly  opposed  at  first  by  both 
the  white  and  colored  people,  but  she  perse- 
'^ered  until  now  all  are  her  friends.  She  has 
300  acres  of  land,  all  paid  for.  A large  central 
building  has  been  erected  at  a cost  of  $3,000. 
This  contains  offices,  classrooms,  and  a chapel 
that  wall  seat  600.  This  building  is  paid  for, 
and  a girls’  dormitory  to  cost  $4,000,  for 
which  the  money  is  in  the  treasury,  is  in  pro- 
cess of  erection.  The  plans  for  both  of  these 
buildings  were  drawn  by  a Tuskegee  student. 
A barn  to  cost  $800  is  nearly  completed, 
and  there  are  several  other  small  buildings. 
Miss  Wright  is  assisted  by  three  Tuskegee 
graduates,  one  as  the  farm  superintendent,  one 
as  treasurer  and  bookkeeper,  and  the  other 
as  carpenter  and  teacher  of  drawing.  The 
day  and  boarding  students  number  more 
than  300.  Farming  in  its  various  branches 
is  the  principal  w'ork  of  the  students,  but  they 
are  also  taught  shoemaking,  carpentry,  cook- 
ing, sewing,  housekeeping,  and  laundrying, 
while  printing  and  blacksmithing  are  soon  to 
follow.  The  school  spent  $9,000  last  year  in 
current  expenses,  I)uilding  expenses  and  the 
purchase  of  land.* 

One  of  our  graduates,  Mr.  Wm.  V.  Cham- 
bliss, has  charge  of  the  farming  operations  of 
the  Southern  Improvement  Company,  an 
organization  that  controls  4,000  acres  of  land, 
and  has  settled  in  it,  up  to  the  present  time, 
some  forty  Negro  families;  and  the  number 
is  increasing  each  year.  These  families  are 
being  given  the  opportunity,  through  their 
labor  and  the  guidance  of  Mr.  Chambliss,  to 
buy  their  homes.  ]\Ir.  Chambliss  does  not 
use  the  hoe  himself,  for  he  finds  it  more 
economical  to  spend  his  time  in  other  direc- 
tions. When  the  world  wants  cotton  or 
com,  it  cares  little  whether  the  man  uses  his 


pen  or  his  hoe.  What  it  desires  are  results. 
Some  men  have  the  ability  to  produce  fifty 
times  as  much  cotton  with  the  pen  as  with 
the  hoe. 

I want  to  show  one  example,  at  least,  that 
will  show  how  our  students  succeed  when 
working  directly  under  others.  The  letter 
which  follows  is  to  the  point : 

“Prof.  Booker  T.  Washington. 

Dear  Sir:  The  students  from  your  school  who 

have  been  at  work  here  during  the  vacation  expect 
to  return  to  Tuskegee  to-morrorv,  and  we  want  to 
say  to  you  that  these  boys  have  demonstrated  to 
our  company  the  wonderful  benefit  of  your  teaching. 
These  young  men  have  taken  hold  of  their  work  in  a 
steady  and  businesslike  way,  and  have  worked 
uncomplainingly  during  the  severe  heat  of  the 
past  summer.  We  would  like,  if  it  is  possible,  to 
induce  a number  of  your  students  to  purchase  their 
homes  about  our  works  in  North  Birmingham  and 
become  regular  workmen  in  our  different  shops. 
We  have  a letter  before  us  now,  written  by  one  of 
your  students,  John  Davis,  which  would  reflect 
credit  on  the  masters  of  Yale  or  Harvard.  Please 
accept  our  best  wishes  for  the  success  of  the  grand 
work  you  have  undertaken. 

“Dimmick  Pipe  Works  Company, 

“Birmingham,  Alabama.” 

Perhaps  the  best  example  of  a Tuskegee 
graduate  who  is  using  his  knowledge  of  stock 
raising  in  a practical  way  is  that  of  William 
Johnson  Shoals,  Clear  Creek,  Indian  Territory. 
Shoals  owns  and  operates  his  own  stock 
farm,  which  is  one  of  the  largest  in  the 
Territory,  and  has  been  successful  from  the 
first. 

The  following  letter  will  indicate  one  of 
the  ways  in  which  we  are  able  to  assist  the 
public  school  system  from  time  to  time; 

“Ethelville,  Alabama,  June,  1903. 

Professor  B.  T.  Washington; 

“I  am  very  anxious  to  afford  the  colored  teachers 
of  this  county  the  best  instruction  possible,  and  so  I 
write  to  ask  if  you  cannot  send  us  one  of  your 
teachers  to  conduct  a normal  institute  to  be  held  at 
Carrollton  June  29th  to  July  4th — a teacher  whom 
you  can  recommend.  I am  sorry  to  say  the  county 
has  no  money  it  can  spend  on  this  matter. 

“Yours  truly, 

“W.  H.  Storey, 

“County  Superintendent  of  Education.” 

In  addition  to  the  extracts  from  the  report 
of  an  official  of  the  Tuskegee  Institute  who 
made  a visit  to  Montgomery,  Alabama,  and 
reported  on  the  work  being  done  there  by 
Tuskegee  students  published  on  page  3749, 
the  following  may  also  be  cited: 


♦It  was  impossible  to  publish  this  article  in  The  World’s  Work  in  its  entirety.  All  of  the  matter  omitted  from  The  World *5 
Work  is  published  in  this  pamphlet  be^nning  at  this  poin^. 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


Thomas,  Julia,  learned  sewing  and  dress- 
making at  Tuskegee.  She  lives  with  her 
brother  on  South  Ripley  Street,  working  at 
her  trade,  and  has  all  the  work  she  can  do. 

Thomas,  Mrs.  Wm.  (Novella  Smart),  is 
the  wife  of  a man  employed  in  J.  \V.  Adams’s 
store.  They  have  a good  home  on  South 
Ripley  Street  the  attractiveness  of  which 
attests  her  good  qualities  as  a housekeeper. 

Prior,  D.  B.,  is  a letter  carrier  from  the 
Montgomery  post-office.  He  has  been  em- 
ployed here  only  one  year.  He  owns 
property  in  Pike  County,  Alabama.  Before 
coming  to  Montgomer}"  he  taught  school  at 
Troy,  Alabama.  He  also  farmed  in  connec- 
tion with  his  school-teaching. 

Lyons,  William,  has  been  employed  for  the 
last  two  or  three  years  by  the  ^Montgomery 
Carriage  Company,  one  of  the  largest  firms 
of  Montgomery. 

Perdue,  Augustus  C.,  has  an  excellent 
reputation  as  a carpenter  and  contractor  in 
Montgomery.  I found  him  at  work  on  the 
inside  of  a fine  house  on  South  Perry  Street, 
and  at  another  time  I found  him  overseeing  a 
contract  on  a large  house  at  Highland  Park, 
a fashionable  suburb  of  IMontgomery.  He 
has  a good  home  on  Jeff  Davis  Avenue  and 
owns  considerable  other  property. 

Turner,  Russell,  I found  chopping  cotton 
on  a plantation  four  miles  out  of  the 
city.  This  man  was  at  Tuskegee  for  only  a 
short  time,  and  that  several  years  ago,  but 
he  said  that  he  felt  that  his  wffiole  life  had 
been  influenced  for  good  by  even  the  brief 
time  that  he  was  at  the  school.  He  lives 
with  his  mother,  who  owns  forty  acres  of 
land,  on  which  they  have  recently  put  up  a 
neat  three-room  frame  house,  and,  his  father 
being  dead,  he  has  the  care  and  management 
of  the  place. 

Jones,  Luther  M.,  a young  man,  is  working 
at  the  Hughes  Dairy,  and  is  reported  by 
the  managers  as  giving  satisfaction.  Other 
Tuskegee  students  are  desired  by  the 
management. 

Pope,  Robert,  has  been  employed  by  one 
of  the  largest  wholesale  drug  houses  in  IMont- 
gomery  for  eight  years,  ever  since  the  firm 
was  established.  He  has  a good  house, 
worth  at  a very  moderate  estimate  $1,500,  and 
has  just  bought  and  paid  for  a vacant  lot 
worth  $450.  At  the  store  where  he  is  em- 
ployed he  was  recommended  to  me  as  “a 
thoroughly  satisfactory  and  responsible  man.” 


Wyman,  Henry,  has  been  employed  in  the 
Montgomery  post-office  for  ten  years  as 
canceling  or  distributing  clerk.  He  has  re- 
cently opened  a neat  and  well-fumished 
grocery  store  on  the  comer  of  Holt  and 
Grady  streets. 

Cummings,  James,  who  learned  the  car- 
penter’s trade  at  Tuskegee,  was  reported  to 
me  as  running  a restaurant  at  present. 

Solomon,  Francis,  a carpenter,  I was  not 
able  to  find.  He  has  been  employed  nearly 
ever  since  he  left  Tuskegee  by  A.  C.  Perdue, 
the  contractor  and  carpenter  already  referred 
to  in  this  paper. 

Colson,  Buford,  I found  hard  at  work  in  a 
shoemaking  shop,  to  which  he  had  come 
directly  from  the  Tuskegee  school  shop  four 
months  before.  He  is  the  fourth  man  this 
employer  has  had  from  Tuskegee.  Two  of 
these  men  are  now  back  at  the  school  at  work 
in  the  shop,  and  the  other  has  a shop  of  his 
own  at  Camp  Hill,  Alabama.  When  I asked 
the  proprietor  in  regard  to  Colson’s  character, 
he  said,  ‘‘He  is  as  steady  as  a clock.” 

Campbell,  Oran  L.,  is  working  and  earning 
$15  a week.  He  owns  a home  worth  $1,000, 
two  vacant  lots,  and  a horse  and  bugg^q  cows, 
pigs,  etc.  He  has  worked  as  a printer  at  the 
State  Normal  School.  He  is  now  a barber. 

Abercrombie,  Nicholas  E.,  graduated  in  the 
class  of  1888.  He  received  an  appointment 
in  the  Montgomery  post-office  soon  after, 
and  has  remained  there  ever  since,  through 
various  administrations.  His  position  is  now 
that  of  a mailing  clerk.  This  man’s  wife, 
Estelle  Lowrie,  was  also  a Tuskegee  student. 

Todd,  F.  S.,  is  a rural  mail  carrier  from  the 
Montgomery  post-office.  He  received  his 
appointment  about  a year  ago.  He  owns 
his  home. 

Alexander,  ]\Irs.  Nathan  (Annie  Morgan), 
is  the  mistress  and  keeper  of  one  of  the  finest 
Negro  homes  in  Montgomery.  It  is  a model 
of  neatness,  convenience  and  comfort.  Her 
husband  is  United  States  Receiver  of  Public 
IMoneys. 

White,  Israel,  a carpenter,  I found  at  work 
on  a house.  He  has  been  away  from  school 
eight  years,  and  has  had  steady  work  all 
the  time. 

Meadows,  Charles,  carpenter,  has  been  very 
steadily  employed  at  his  trade  for  some  years. 
He  has  been  recently  employed  on  the  Carnegie 
Library  being  erected  at  Montgomery.  He 
owns  his  home. 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


Lamar,  Bradley,  a carpenter  who  has  been 
away  from  the  school  three  years,  has  been 
employed  this  spring  with  several  other  men 
from  the  school  on  a church  at  Highland 
I’ark. 

Thomas,  Scott,  I found  in  charge  of  Mr. 
M.  C.  Scott’s  dairy.  This  establishment  was 
milking  164  cows  when  I was  there,  with  96 
more  dry,  and  heifers  in  the  pasture.  Mr. 
Scott  has  had  several  men  from  the  Tuskegee 
dairy  school  before  this  one.  When  I asked 
if  they  had  given  satisfaction,  he  said,  “ Every 
man  that  the  Tuskegee  school  has  recom- 
mended to  me  has  been  thoroughly  satis- 
factory.” In  my  presence  at  the  time  of  the 
visit,  he  gave  an  order  for  two  more  men 
from  the  school  as  soon  as  the  approaching 
vacation  would  set  them  at  liberty. 

Pierce,  Jimmie  M.,  graduated  in  the  class 
of  1898.  She  learned  dressmaking  and  mil- 
linery at  Tuskegee,  and  for  the  last  five  years 
lias  been  in  charge  of  the  millinery  depart- 
ment of  the  store  of  J.  W.  Adams,  Mont- 
gomery, where  her  work  has  not  only  given 
satisfaction  to  her  employer,  but  has  made 
her  an  excellent  reputation  in  the  city. 

Smith,  Alice,  graduated  in  the  class  of 
1902  and  came  at  once  to  work  at  her  trade 
of  millinery  at  the  store  of  J.  W.  Adams, 
where  she  has  been  employed  ever  since.  1 
saw  both  these  young  women  at  work. 

Chadwick,  William,  a house  painter,  I did 
not  find,  but  a responsible  carpenter  of 
whom  I inquired  told  me  that  he  knew 
Chadwick  to  be  reckoned  a good  workman, 
and  that  he  had  plenty  of  work.  Another 
man  of  whom  I inquired  in  regard  to  Chad- 
wick, said  that  he  was  a capable  workman,  but 
that  he  did  not  think  he  worked  very  steadily. 

Davis,  Euphemia,  who  graduated  in  the 
nurse-training  class  of  1899,  has  been  em- 
ployed very  regularly  in  Montgomery  since 
then,  but  at  the  time  I inquired  for  her  she 
was  at  work  in  an  infirmary  in  Selma.  She 
has  worked  as  a nurse  ever  since  she  left 
Tuskegee. 

Vaughn,  Ellen,  graduated  from  the  nurse 
training  department  at  Tuskegee  in  1900. 
When  I called  to  see  her  she  was  not  at  work, 
but  told  me  she  had  been  almost  constantly 
employed  teaching  or  nursing  since  she 
had  come  from  the  school,  and  this  statement 
was  confirmed  by  others  of  whom  I inquired. 

Sheppard,  S.  C.,  has  been  employed  in  the 
Montgomery  post-office  as  a letter  carrier 


for  over  ten  years.  I saw  him  at  work  on  his 
route.  He  has  an  excellent  home  on  Douglass 
Street.  This  man’s  wife,  Nellie  Moore,  was 
also  a Tuskegee  student,  learning  dress- 
making. Since  her  marriage  she  has  con- 
tinued to  work  at  her  trade.  When  I called 
at  her  house  she  was  at  work  and  had  three 
women  working  under  her.  The  exquisite 
neatness  of  her  house  showed  that  she  was 
a good  housekeeper. 

Abercrombie,  Ida  M.,  graduated  from  the 
class  of  1889,  and  since  then  has  taught 
continuously  in  the  city  schools  of  Mont- 
gomery, being  at  present  employed  in  the 
Day  Street  School.  I visited  her  school,  and 
am  satisfied  that  she  is  an  unusually  com- 
petent teacher. 

Watkins,  IMrs.  I.  S.  (Celia  MacDonald), 
graduated  in  the  class  of  1893.  Her  husband 
is  a prosperous  pharmacist,  and  they  have 
an  unusually  good  home  on  South  Jackson 
Street.  One  has  only  to  go  into  this  house 
to  see  that  Mrs.  Watkins  is  a model  house- 
keeper. 

In  addition  to  Messrs.  Sidney  Murphy  and 
John  Jordan,  referred  to  on  page  3749  by 
Mr.  Bedford  in  his  report,  the  following  may 
also  be  mentioned : 

W.  D.  Floyd,  1887,  makes  his  headquarters 
at  Eufaula  and  teaches  seven  miles  out. 

James  M.  Chisholm  of  the  tailoring  depart- 
ment, 1896,  has  one  of  the  best  shops  in 
Eufaula.  He  employs  several  men  in  the 
shop  and  a number  of  women  and  men  on 
the  outside.  He  has  a beautiful  home  of 
his  own. 

Jackson  York,  a former  student,  teaches 
near  Eufaula  and  lives  with  his  mother. 

Ellen  Turner,  a former  student,  teaches 
in  the  public  schools  of  the  city. 

Clara  Fox,  a former  student,  is  as.sisting 
her  mother  in  the  care  of  her  home. 

Eva  Collins,  a former  student  and  assistant 
teacher  at  Tuskegee  in  the  kindergarten 
school,  is  teaching  near  Eufaula. 

Maxie  Smith  is  teaching  near  Eufaula. 

Beatrice  Mitchell,  a former  student,  is  now 
Mrs.  Walter  Thomas.  Her  husband  is  a 
painter.  They  live  in  their  own  home. 

D.  Jackson,  a former  student,  is  first 
assistant  to  Mr.  IMurphy.  He  has  a good 
home  all  paid  for. 

There  are  now  thirteen  students  at  Tus- 
kegee from  Eufaula,  and  much  of  the  infiv-cnce 
which  brought  them  here  is  due  to  the  spirit 


THE  SUCCESSFUL  TRAINING  OF  THE  NEGRO 


of  the  graduates  and  former  students  living 
in  the  city.  Seven  graduates,  five  former 
students,  are  in  Eufaula. 

Ada  Fisher,  1897,  taught  at  Eufaula  and 
worked  at  her  trade  of  tailoring  till  she 
married  James  1\I.  Chisholm,  who  graduated 
from  the  tailoring  department  in  1896. 

Elmira  Turner,  1898,  was  employed  in  the 
public  schools  with  Mr.  Murphy  till  her 
health  failed,  when  she  took  a small  school 
near  the  city. 

Paralee  Jackson,  1898,  teaches  in  one  of  the 
suburbs  of  Eufaula.  She  was  two  years  in 
the  nurse  training  department  and  is  occa- 
sionally employed  in  nursing. 

The  following  institutions  have  grown  out 
of  the  Tuskegee  Institute  and  have  been 
chartered  under  the  laws  of  the  various 
States  where  they  are  situated.  Not  only 
have  they  been  founded  by  Tuskegee  gradu- 
ates, but  the  officers  and  in  many  cases  the 
entire  faculty  are  composed  of  Tuskegee 
graduates. 

Some  of  the  principal  schools  of  this  class 
are  the  following: 

Mt.  Meigs  Institute,  Waugh,  Alabama; 
Snow  Hill  Institute,  Snow  Hill,  Alabama; 
Voorhees  Industrial  School,  Denmark,  South 
Carolina;  East  Tennessee  Normal  and  Indus- 
trial Institute,  Harriman,  Tennessee;  Robert 
Hungerford  Industrial  Institute,  Eatonville, 
Florida;  Topeka  Educational  and  Industrial 
Institute,  Topeka,  Kansas;  Allengreene 
Normal  and  Industrial  Institute,  Ruston, 
Louisiana;  Utica  Normal  and  Industrial 
Institute,  Utica,  Mississippi;  Christiansburg 
Institute,  Cambria,  Virginia. 

It  is  a matter  of  the  deepest  regret  that  I 
have  not  space  to  describe  in  detail  the  history 
and  growth  of  these  schools.  The  story  of 
struggle,  sacrifice  and  hard  work  connected 
with  the  establishing  of  some  of  them  is  more 
akin  to  romance  than  reality. 

Snow  Hill  Institute,  Snow  Hill,  Alabama, 
for  illustration,  was  founded  by  William  J. 
Edwards,  of  the  class  of  1893.  This  school 
is  now  in  its  tenth  year,  and  was  started  in  a 
one-room  cabin.  Soon  after  the  school  was 
established  Honorable  R.  O.  Simpson,  a 
wealthy  white  resident  of  the  community,  was 
so  impressed  with  its  good  effect  upon  the 
Negroes  of  the  vicinity  that  he  gave  the  school 
forty  acres  of  land.  This  has  been  added  to 
until  the  school  now  owns  160  acres,  and 
property  all  told  to  the  value  of  $30,000. 


Last  year  it  expended  $20,000  in  its  operations. 
It  has  about  200  boarding  students,  and  400 
in  all.  The  following  trades  are  taught: 
Farming,  carpentry,  wheel wrighting,  black- 
smithing,  painting,  brickmaking,  printing, 
sewing,  cooking,  housekeeping.  About 
twenty  teachers  and  instructors  are  employed, 
nearly  all  graduates  or  former  students  of 
Tuskegee.  Snow  Hill  has  sent  out  twenty- 
five  graduates.  All  are  required  to  pass  the 
state  teachers’  examination  before  graduating. 
Six  of  them  are  teachers  in  the  Institute. 
The  school  not  only  has  the  support  and  the 
sympathy  of  Mr.  R.  O.  Simpson,  but  all  the 
best  white  people  in  the  county. 

A little  more  than  a year  ago  one  of  our 
graduates,  Mr.  Charles  P.  Adams,  established 
a small  school  at  Ruston,  Louisiana.  At 
present  the  school  owns  twenty-five  acres  of 
land,  on  which  a schoolhouse  costing  $1,200 
has  been  built  and  paid  for.  The  school 
term  has  been  extended  from  three  to  eight 
months,  with  three  teachers — all  Tuskegee 
graduates — and  no  pupils.  In  connection 
with  the  classroom  work  the  students  are 
taught  agriculture  and  housekeeping.  All 
this  has  been  done  in  a little  more  than  one 
year  with  money  and  labor  contributed  by 
the  people  of  both  races  in  the  community. 
In  regard  to  Mr.  Adams’s  work.  Honorable 
B.  F.  Thompson,  the  Mayor  of  Ruston,  says 
‘ ‘ Professor  Adams  deserves  credit  for  what  he 
has  accomplished.”  Honorable  S.  D.  Pearce, 
the  representative  of  the  parish  in  the  State 
Legislature,  says,  ‘‘The  school  is  doing  fine 
work  for  the  education  of  the  colored  youth 
of  this  section  of  the  State,  and  Professor 
Adams  is  making  a vigorous  struggle  for  its 
advancement.”  Mr.  W.  E.  Redwine,  Super- 
intendent of  Public  Instruction  for  the 
parish,  says,  ‘‘Professor  Adams  is  doing 
work  in  the  right  direction  for  the  betterment 
of  his  race.”  Mr.  A.  J.  Bell,  the  editor  of  the 
local  paper,  says,  ‘‘His  work  in  this  section 
has  been  productive  of  incalculable  good.” 

As  to  the  work  of  the  Utica  Normal  and 
Industrial  Institute,  Utica,  Mississippi,  I will 
let  Mr.  W.  H.  Holtzclaw,  the  principal,  tell 
in  his  own  words: 

‘‘I  came  here  from  Snow  Hill,  Alabama, 
last  October  without  a cent  (I  left  my  wife 
behind  because  of  lack  of  means  to  bring  her, 
and  I walked  part  of  the  way  through  a wild 
and  unfrequented  part  of  this  State),  and 
started  this  work  under  a tree.  Now  we 


thp:  successful  training  of  the  negro 


have  two  horses,  forty  acres  of  land,  one  cow 
and  a calf,  a farm  planted  and  growing, 
more  than  200  students,  seven  teachers, 
and  a building  going  up.  In  all  my  efforts  I 
have  had  the  wise  counsel  and  constant  assist- 
ance of  Mrs.  Holtzclaw,  without  which  I 
could  not  have  made  much  progress.” 

Harriman  Industrial  Institute,  Harriman, 
Tennessee,  was  established  five  years  ago  by 
J.  W.  Oveltrea,  of  the  class  of  1893.  The 
school  has  thirty  acres  of  land  in  the  suburbs 
of  Harriman.  Mr.  Oveltrea  and  his  wife  are 
both  graduates  of  Tuskegee,  and  they  have 
been  aided  in  their  work  by  Tuskegee  grad- 
uates and  students.  The  school  has  four 
buildings  and  about  100  students.  Several 
trades  are  taught. 

The  Robert  Hungerford  Institute,  in  Eaton- 
vHle,  Florida,  was  founded  by  R.  C.  Calhoun, 
of  the  class  of  1896.  Eaton ville  is  about 
six  miles  from  Orlando.  Mr.  Calhoun  had 
nothing  to  begin  with  but  the  little  public 
school.  He  has  secured  200  acres  of  land, 
clear  of  debt,  and  a year  ago  dedicated 
Booker  T.  Washington  Hall,  a dormitory 
and  classroom  building,  with  chapel.  This 
building  cost  $3,000;  the  plans  for  it  were 
drawn  by  a Tuskegee  graduate.  The  trades 
taught  are  farming,  wheelwrighting,  painting, 
carpentry,  sewing,  cooking  and  laundering. 


Miss  Nathalie  Lord,  one  of  my  early 
teachers  at  Hampton,  is  a trustee  of  this 
school.  The  school  is  now  in  its  fourth 
year.  It  has  forty  boarding  students  and 
nearly  one  hundred  day  students.  Mrs. 
Calhoun,  who  is  her  husband’s  assistant,  was 
a student  at  Tuskegee,  as  was  also  the  man 
who  has  charge  of  the  blacksmith  and  wheel- 
wright shops. 

In  closing,  I wish  to  add  that  I do  not  want 
my  readers  to  get  the  impression  that  all  of 
Tuskegee’s  men  and  women  have  succeeded, 
because  they  have  not.  Some  have  failed 
miserably,  much  to  our  regret,  but  the  per- 
centage of  failures  is  so  very  small  that 
they  are  more  than  overshadowed  by  the 
successes. 

My  greatest  regret  is  that  I am  compelled 
to  leave  out  of  this  statement  any  detailed 
description  of  the  influence  of  the  Tuskegee 
Negro  Conference,  which  has  been  the  means 
of  helping  hundreds  of  our  people  to  buy 
land,  build  dwelling  houses,  schoolhouses, 
and  lengthening  the  school  terms 

Despite  all  that  I have  said,  the  work  has 
merely  begun.  I believe  we  have  found  the 
way.  Our  endeavor  will  be  to  continue  to 
pursue  it  faithfully,  actively,  bravely,  hon- 
estly. With  sufficient  means,  such  work 
as  I have  indicated  could  be  greatly  increased. 


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